Almost everyone feels bloated sometimes. Feeling bloated most days is different: there is usually a cause you can find, and what helps depends on that cause.
Bloating is the feeling of fullness, pressure or trapped gas. Distension is a visible increase in the size of your belly. You can have one without the other, and the causes overlap but aren’t identical. Doctors use both words, so it helps to tell them which one you have.
| Cause | Clues | What to try |
|---|---|---|
| Swallowed air and fizzy drinks | Burping; worse after eating quickly, chewing gum or carbonated drinks | Eat slowly with your mouth closed; cut back on fizzy drinks |
| Gas-producing foods | Worse after beans, lentils, cabbage, onions and similar foods | Smaller portions; alpha-galactosidase for beans; a low-FODMAP trial |
| Constipation | Fewer or harder stools, straining | Treat the constipation first |
| Lactose or fructose intolerance | Gas, bloating or loose stools after dairy, or after fruit and sweeteners | A trial of cutting the suspected food, or a breath test |
| IBS | Belly pain linked to bowel movements, changes in stool | A doctor’s diagnosis; low-FODMAP trial, soluble fiber, peppermint oil |
| Coeliac disease | Diarrhea, belly pain, tiredness, weight loss | A blood test while you are still eating gluten |
| Small intestinal bacterial overgrowth (SIBO) | More likely after bowel surgery or with conditions that slow the gut | Breath testing and treatment by a doctor |
| Hormones | Before a period or around menopause | Track it against your cycle |
| Belly wall reflex (abdomino-phrenic dyssynergia) | The belly visibly pushes out after meals | Biofeedback and diaphragmatic breathing with a specialist |
The 2023 clinical practice update from the American Gastroenterological Association (AGA) says carbohydrate intolerances can be checked with a trial of dietary restriction or a breath test. It reserves scans and endoscopy for people with warning signs, recent worsening or abnormal findings on examination.
The NHS suggests regular exercise, eating slowly, smaller and more frequent meals, enough water and a gentle belly massage. It suggests cutting back on fizzy drinks, alcohol, caffeine, large late-night meals and big portions of gas-producing foods.
If you are constipated, the AGA advises treating it as a way to reduce bloating. See constipation remedies ranked by evidence, psyllium: dose and real cost and magnesium for constipation.
FODMAPs are carbohydrates that gut bacteria ferment into gas: found in beans, onions, garlic, wheat, some fruits, milk and sweeteners such as sorbitol. The American College of Gastroenterology (ACG) recommends a limited trial of a low-FODMAP diet for IBS. It is meant as a short elimination followed by reintroducing foods, not a permanent diet, so it works best with a dietitian.
The ACG suggests peppermint oil for overall IBS symptoms. The most common side effects are mild heartburn and indigestion.
Lactase can help if you are lactose intolerant, and alpha-galactosidase with meals containing beans or lentils. Broad enzyme blends have little evidence. Details: digestive enzymes for bloating.
The NHS notes that a pharmacist can advise on simeticone for bloating and on laxatives if constipation is the cause.
Bloating is one of the main promises of video-marketed gut capsules. None of the ones we reviewed has been tested in a trial for bloating. Gut Save relies partly on probiotics, which the AGA doesn’t recommend for bloating. GutOptim’s 1.5 g blend is far below the fiber doses used in research. Details: Gut Save vs DigestiStart vs GutOptim and our guide to supplements for bloating and constipation.
Usually because of gas from food and swallowed air, constipation, a food intolerance or IBS. If it happens regularly, or changing your diet hasn’t helped, see a doctor.
Eating quickly, fizzy drinks and gas-producing foods are the usual triggers. If your belly visibly pushes out after meals, ask about abdomino-phrenic dyssynergia, a reflex that can be retrained with biofeedback.
There’s no instant fix. Moving around, a gentle belly massage and skipping fizzy drinks may help; a pharmacist can advise on simeticone.
When it comes with weight loss, blood in your stool, vomiting, fever or a lump, or when a woman aged 50 or over has it more than 12 times a month. Those need a doctor.
Fiber, clay, aloe and one probiotic in a 1.5 g blend
Full ingredient list, but the whole blend is a fraction of the fiber doses used in studies.
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Fish collagen, herbs and probiotics, 500 mg with every dose listed
The most open label of the three, with small amounts of each ingredient.
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11 traditional Chinese herbs in a 500 mg blend
A herbal tonic blend, about 45 mg per herb, with mostly lab and animal studies behind it.
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Honey, bee products, herbs and berberine in a 550 mg blend
Berberine is listed last, so a serving holds about 4 mg of it at most.
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